Perhaps, just perhaps, if the Detroit Lions were able to draft Dee Milliner, a year from now draft talk wouldn’t drift to cornerback the way it always seems to do.

Milliner, who is out of Alabama, the national championship team, is a bit untested. But he’s universally ranked as the best cornerback in April’s NFL draft.

ESPN draftnik Mel Kiper projects that he will be drafted fourth, fifth or sixth overall.

The Lions have the No. 5 overall pick.

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In his latest mock draft, Kiper has Milliner going to the Eagles at No. 4. Three NFL Network draft experts — Gil Brandt, Bucky Brooks and Charles Davis — have Milliner going to the Lions.

ESPN’s Todd McShay has him going third to Oakland. CBS Sports’ Rob Rang has him 13th to Tampa Bay while his colleague Dane Brugler has the Browns drafting him at No. 6.

It’s still early. The NFL Combine is next week which could change some minds.

“Can Dee Milliner be a heck of a player? Yeah. Does he have an elite skill set? No. He wasn’t a starter until this year at Alabama,’’ Kiper said in a conference call on Wednesday.

Milliner’s former teammate, Dre Kirkpatrick, was drafted 17th overall last year by Cincinnati.

“(Milliner) doesn’t necessarily have the overall talent physically and athletically as Dre Kirkpatrick, his former teammate,’’ Kiper said. “But he is more fundamentally sound. I think he’s a guy technically, the way he’s coached by Nick (Saban) and his staff down there, it’s only going to help him.

“He’s the kind of guy, because you need corners, and he’s a solid, consistent, reliable player he’s going to go four, five or six,’’ Kiper added.

Because the talent in each draft varies, it’s hard to compare the order to past elite corners. Mo Claiborne was drafted sixth overall in 2012, while corner Patrick Peterson was fifth in 2011.

“It doesn’t matter about that because each draft is different because of the talent at the top,’’ Kiper said. “That’s going to be the reason why that Milliner goes maybe a little earlier than those other players because of the way this draft is set up, when it’s all said and done.’’

It seems it’s always cornerbacks on the wish list for the Lions when it comes to the draft.

It’s such a position of need that last year the Lions drafted three of them — Bill Bentley (third round), Chris Greenwood (fifth round) and Jonte Green (sixth round).

The need is still there. Chris Houston is an unrestricted free agent who undoubtedly the Lions will try to re-sign.

While there were promising signs from Bentley who earned the start out of training camp, he’s still a question mark because he played in just four games then missed the rest of the season after shoulder surgery.

Green, who managed to stay healthy, showed he has possibilities playing in 15 games with five starts.

Greenwood was out all year after surgery to repair an abdominal tear in late spring.

Wilson to visit

Veteran safety George Wilson, who was released by the Buffalo Bills on Monday, will visit the Lions on Thursday as was first reported by CBS Sports.

The 31-year-old Wilson has been a starter for the past two seasons after making the transition from wide receiver in 2007.

Not only is safety a need for the Lions, but the 31-year-old Wilson could bring that much desired veteran leadership too. In his eight seasons with Buffalo, he was voted a team captain five times.

Walton gone

Tim Walton, who had been the Lions defensive backs coach for four seasons, has been hired by the St. Louis Rams as defensive coordinator.

Prior to joining the Lions, Walton had been defensive coordinator for the University of Memphis.